


APOTHEOSIS

by madkingray



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Royalty, Blade of Marmora Keith (Voltron), Cannibalism, Forced Cannibalism, Kingdoms in Space, M/M, Minor Character Death, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Trans Keith (Voltron)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-24
Updated: 2018-07-24
Packaged: 2019-06-15 10:23:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15410847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/madkingray/pseuds/madkingray
Summary: There was once an old saying that was spread across the universe, an idea that many wanted to achieve in their quest for power but were too afraid to attempt—consume the heart of a king to become a god.(A mortal and a god come together, creating a story of devotion that will last for eternity.)





	APOTHEOSIS

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I haven't posted a fic in forever and have actually been working on this one for a few months. This concept was created around 2014/2015 for a different fandom and I decided to remake this to fit Kuro and Keith. I have the rest of the fic planned out and wanted to post this chapter when I was close to finishing chapter 2, but I got too excited because I really love this AU and wanted to share it with y'all HAHA.
> 
> Thank you so much to Aki, Mack, Rox, Link, and Rody for checking this and making sure it was okay. Y'all are so great. I really appreciate you (and also appreciate that you let me ramble about this AU for a long time HAHA).
> 
> Please enjoy!

**apotheosis**  
_noun_ |  apo·the·o·sis | \ə-ˌpä-thē-ˈō-səs , ˌa-pə-ˈthē-ə-səs\  
elevation to a divine status • making into a _god_

 

** I. ENCOUNTERS **

 

The smell of juniberry hits him when he enters the castle.

They dangle from the ceiling and spiral around the banisters in the form of meticulously made garlands. Before the stairs lies an explosion of them, arranged in a way that surrounds the closed casket that floats behind a podium.

All the guests are seated in chairs, the arrangement split down the middle by an aisle. A few guests linger near the walls, dressed in darker colors as a sign of mourning—navy, maroon, purple, and even brown. It shows just how many kingdoms came together to mourn the loss of a leader, willing to stand together in a single room to pay respect to the dead.

Keith threw a black cloak over his Marmora suit before he arrived, mask retracted and hood up. It’s not the way Altea honors the fallen, but Keith isn’t just here for the funeral.

He has a mission.

Keith sinks down into an empty seat all the way in the back just as someone works her way up to the front podium with her head held high. It only takes a second to identify her, even with her white hair pulled up into a bun and her usual dress replaced with pink armor.

Princess Allura of Altea, daughter of the late King Alfor.

“My father was a kind and honest man who believed in the people of Altea.” Allura begins in a strong voice. “He wanted people to have the freedom to do whatever they wanted to do, reach new heights with their scientific discoveries, and refused to let a distance grow between himself and his people.” Her smile is sad and her eyes are shining, but she does not waver. “He was not just a king. He was a friend, a teacher, an advisor, an alchemist… a father. I will miss him dearly, and my sorrow will never leave me, but the memories I have of him will bring me strength for the rest of my life.”

There’s an audible murmur of agreement heard throughout the crowd.

“Let us all remember how King Alfor changed our lives for the better,” she continues. “Let him live on in our hearts, for he is still with us in spirit even when he is not with us physically.” Allura lifts her hands and closes her eyes. “Let him pass on safely to the realm of our ancestors and be welcomed home with open arms.”

Another murmur, an echo of her words flowing through the room. Keith repeats them under his breath and feels the spark of magic that they carry, a blessing for the dead.

“Goodbye, King Alfor.” Allura finishes in a softer voice, turning and placing her hand on the casket that was floating behind her. It glows a brilliant blue, bright enough to make him squint. “May you rest easy with the Life Givers who came before.”

 

**♔♔♔**

 

Many people trail up to the podium to share their own experiences with King Alfor, voices tinged with nostalgia as they share their favorite stories about the man.

Trigel, Blaytz, and Gyrgan spend the most time up there. All three of them don’t hide the fact that they are openly crying when they speak about King Alfor, and Keith recalls the times that he saw them around the castle back when he’d been staying there.

King Alfor used to fight alongside them to protect the universe against those who would do it harm, a group of friends that formed a strong bond along the way.

There is another person missing, though. It makes him wonder if his leader’s suspicion of King Zarkon will be proven right.

Well, Keith will find out soon enough.

Coran, another one of King Alfor’s friends, steps up and recites a blessing that marks the end of the event. He was always an exuberant man, even when he became King Alfor’s advisor and confidant, but all that energy seems to have disappeared in this moment.

The crowd rises from their seats after Coran finishes with a bow, applauding politely and forming a clustered line as they are directed into the next room for drinks and a meal. It is Altean tradition, apparently, and the food is supposed to be King Alfor’s favorite.

Keith plans on going up to Allura to speak with her, but stops when he sees that she’s busy—standing off to the side and shaking the hands of guests as they pass by her. He weaves through the crowd before he can get trapped between them, making his way out of the castle and leaning against one of the walls.

The sky is starting to darken, signifying the end of the quintant, and Keith stares at the colors above him with a tiny smile on his face. He has already seen this sight many times, and yet it still takes his breath away as he watches the vibrant orange fade into a light pink, then to a purple that makes the stars shine brighter as night arrives.

It was always his favorite thing to watch when he’d been in Altea and it’s something he missed terribly after he decided to go and figure himself out with the Blades. No other planet could compare to the beautiful sight, and thinking about it was often a quick way to make him homesick.

At least he gets to see it now, even if the circumstances for him being here involved a death.

As well as the need for information on said death.

Keith sighs over his own mental reminder of the mission, thumb sweeping across his forefinger as he thinks it over.

Kolivan, the leader of the Blades, had assigned this to him because he was familiar with the Castle of Lions and it would be easier for him to get inside rather than have another member of the Blades try to sneak in themselves. Keith had accepted without complaint, taking the chance to go to the place he hasn’t visited in so long.

He might have to sneak around anyways since some parts of the Castle will most likely be closed off—wouldn’t be the first time. King Alfor often kept him and Allura out of certain rooms (his lab being a prime example since he didn’t want to risk them getting hurt by unstable experiments).

Two guards brush past him and normally he’d ignore them, let them go about their business while he went about his but the nervous expression that passes over the shorter one’s face catches his eye.

“Do you think we should have said something?” Keith hears one of them say, followed by a loud shushing noise before they turn right and disappear. He turns that question over in his head and deems it suspicious enough for him to follow them.

He finds himself in a secluded outside seating area and sees the guards sitting next to each other on one of the benches. Keith tries to get as close as he can without being seen, hiding behind a pillar that allows him to peek over at them.

The guard on the right, the one who spoke when they passed Keith, is the first to break the silence, “The princess deserves to know what happened to her father.”

An exasperated sigh fills the air before the guard on the left pulls off their helmet and shakes their head. Magenta hair curls behind her ears and Keith recognizes her as Hira, the commander of all the guards on Altea.

“ _We_ do not even know what happened to King Alfor,” she says. “We cannot make assumptions based on what one person saw.”

“It wasn’t just one person,” the right guard says in an indignant tone. “I let him enter the castle, I know he was here! I may as well have killed King Alfor with my own sword…”

“There is no need for your misplaced guilt,” Hira says sharply. “The mistake is not on us. He is one of the few that King Alfor trusts to come and go freely, he said so himself. We were following our orders, as we always do.”

“Our orders led to the death of our king.”

“How could we know that it would come to that? Every living being knows the depths of their friendship. Who would suspect that King Zarkon had a hand in King Alfor’s death?”

Keith presses a hand to his mouth to muffle his gasp, though the guards’ twin sighs would have covered it up just fine. He lingers, desperately hoping more information will be passed between the two careless guards.

“We saw King Zarkon enter the castle,” Hira says quietly. “And we saw him leave thirty dobashes after. King Alfor’s body was discovered one varga later with a sword through the heart. That is what we know.”

“Our king could not have done it to himself, it’s an impossible task to achieve.”

“What can we say? Who will we tell? We have no concrete evidence that our king was murdered by his long-time friend.” Hira releases another sigh, gaze turned skyward. “You know how fast word can spread, if our suspicions got out to the general public then we’d possibly be endangering our kingdom as well as our future queen.”

“So, what? Are we supposed to stay quiet?”

“Yes.” The single word is said softly, tone defeated. “If King Zarkon could do that to someone he considered a friend, imagine what he would do to the rest of us if he thought we were set to retaliate.”

The silence that follows is uneasy, both guards seemingly lost in thought. Keith takes the chance to leave, mind racing over what he just heard.

 

**♔♔♔**

 

The parting guests pay him no mind as he hurries back to his spot against the wall, lowering his hood so he can enjoy the cool breeze against his face. He watches ships rise up in the air before taking off in different directions, some heading home early now that they have done their part.

Others will most likely stay until the last possible moment, desperate to have good relations with the future leader of Altea.

Peeking inside the castle, he can see that attempts are already being made. Several people are standing close to Allura, chatting their heads off while the princess looks… bored. She does plaster on a (fake) smile whenever they look her way, nodding here and there, but Keith knows her well enough to know that she could care less.

Being the heir to a kingdom meant that there would be people who tried to befriend her to get to her father. She had to learn to tune them out and reject them politely, just like her father did.

Keith actually had to take part in those lessons since there were some that attempted to do the same with him, lessons that didn’t even matter when he wasn’t afraid to ignore them until they left him alone.

Allura copied his demeanor for a while, and they would always burst into laughter whenever people stormed off after being rejected by King Alfor’s daughter and ward.

 _Hopefully, she’ll want to speak with me,_ Keith thinks as he resumes his position against the wall. He chews on his bottom lip, unable to contain his own nerves. _Will she even want to hear what I have to say?  Or will she deny the suspicions around her father’s death completely?_

Keith can’t be certain of the response he’ll receive since it’s been many deca-phoebs since they last spoke. She might even lash out in anger and accuse him of not being there for her father, not protecting him when he needed Keith most.

He stops that train of thought before it can get too far and cause a collision, not wanting to deal with a mountain of guilt. Allura would never say such things, not even to a stranger.

“Don’t project your feelings onto her,” he mutters to himself—because he does feel guilty and he wishes he could have been here to help, but he can’t change the past. “Do your part to try and fix what’s happening now.”

It only helps a little.

More people start trickling out of the castle, all from either neighboring kingdoms or the ones that are much farther out. Their symbols and crests are displayed proudly on their clothing and while he’s gazing at them all, Keith idly notes that there is no one from Daibaizaal.

_Interesting._

“Mind if I join you?”

A voice far too close to have escaped his notice smoothly chimes in at his side.

Keith’s senses have been fine-tuned through his training with the Blades—something he also attributes to his Galra side—so it surprises him to be caught off guard. Had he been too lost in his own thoughts to pay attention to his surroundings?

If Kolivan were here he would surely scold Keith for being so careless.

“I suppose,” Keith finally says when he realizes that his silence alone will not drive them off, sneaking a glance at them and quickly looking away when he accidentally meets grey eyes.

“Thank you,” the stranger says, settling against the wall like Keith has done. “I’m sorry for barging in on your solitude; you caught my eye and I haven’t been able to look away.”

Keith snorts. “Do you use that line on everyone you meet?

“Only the ones that interest me.”

“I must be the last one on the list.

A hum fills the air. “You’re the only one.”

Keith feels his lips twitch, lifting his head to look over at the stranger—a human man dressed in an all black suit that has intricate embroidery in a lighter shade of purple, making it stand out. He looks so simple but holds himself like a person of royalty would.

Perhaps he is.

Those grey eyes are staring back at him again and this time Keith holds his gaze for a few ticks before taking in the man’s other features. White hair set apart from the black, a strange scar across the bridge of his nose, a strong jawline, and nice lips.

_Handsome._

“You’re in luck,” Keith tells him. “No one has ever used _that_ on me before.”

That gets him a pleased smile. “Good.” A pause. “I’m Kuro.”

“I’m Keith,” he offers a moment later, ignoring the Kolivan in his head that shouts _‘do not offer your name so freely to people you do not know!’_

“Keith,” Kuro repeats in a low voice, sending a tingle down Keith’s spine. How strange. “They say that funerals can bring people together.”

The sudden change in topic does confuse him, but Keith is curious. He tilts his head and asks, “Who is ‘they?’”

Kuro smiles. “Me.”

Keith rolls his eyes, but the urge to respond with a smile of his own is quite strong. “Well, I wouldn’t know,” he says. “This is only my second one.”

Curiosity sparks in Kuro’s eyes, vanishing so quickly that Keith is sure he only noticed because of their close proximity. Keith readies himself for the question that’s coming, stomach clenching at the idea of seeing the pity that will appear on Kuro’s face. He remembers seeing it whenever he had to explain his circumstances to strangers.

A new voice cuts in, familiar, stern, and unexpected.

“Keith.”

 _Of course,_ he thinks, facing the leader of the Blade of Marmora just as he comes to a stop before him. “Kolivan,” Keith greets with a dip of his head, eyes narrowing in his direction. “I thought you were going to let me do this on my own.”

He makes no attempt at hiding his irritation.

“I’m well aware of what I said,” Kolivan says with an arched brow. “I decided to drop by to pay my respects and I’ll be doing so for the entire group.”

The irritation fades away and is soon replaced by embarrassment. “Oh,” he replies. “Right.”

“If you have found information already then I’d be happy to hear it,” Kolivan says with a tick of his lips, amusement coloring his voice. “Perhaps you will be able to come home early. Thace is…” He suddenly trails off and crosses his arms, eyes narrowed as they flick to the side.

It’s an expression that Keith is used to seeing, but this time it’s not directed at him.

He’s staring at Kuro, and Kuro meets it with a faint smirk.

“Kolivan,” Kuro says with a friendly smile, but Keith can sense the sharpness beneath that, no more warmth in his gaze. “What a pleasant surprise.”

“Shirogane.” Kolivan’s voice is flat. “Unfortunately, I can’t say the same.”

“I go by Kuro. You know this.”

“My apologies. I had forgotten that you gave up your family ties.” Kolivan’s disdain becomes much more obvious.

“That’s right.”

“And yet you continue to sit on the Shirogane throne as if it means something to you,” Kolivan says, brows knitted together and sneer in place. He looks the most angry Keith has ever seen. “How many more funerals will you cause while your existence continues?”

Keith steps in before things can escalate, feeling a spark of heat over the false accusation when he has some of the information he came here for. “It could not have been him, Kolivan,” he tells him. “King Alfor’s guards claim to have seen King Zarkon leave the kingdom before King Alfor was found dead.”

Kolivan blinks and looks at Keith. “How was he killed?”

“Sword through the heart.”

“See? It couldn’t have been me,” Kuro interjects, looking far too amused. “I would have kept it intact.”

Kolivan and Kuro continue to stare each other down, neither willing to give the other so much as an inch. Keith considers stepping in to break the tense silence when Kuro turns to face him. Keith turns to mirror him.

“I hope we meet again,” Kuro says. He holds out his right hand, the gloved one, and Keith takes it without hesitation.

Their eyes lock for a tick, and then Kuro is dipping his head to brush his lips over Keith’s knuckles; heat blooms across Keith’s cheeks at the action, something that would be more fitting for royalty (which he definitely isn’t, but he’s not complaining).

“Perhaps we will,” Keith says, offering the smallest of smiles when Kuro straightens.

“Perhaps,” Kuro repeats with a playful lilt, letting go of his hand. “Take care.”

Keith inclines his head. “And you.”

He watches Kuro leave, nearly jumping out of his skin when Kolivan spins him around with a strong grip on his arm.

“You will stay away from him, Keith,” Kolivan orders, and Keith immediately feels a curl of defiance settle in his stomach—as it always does whenever he disagrees with his leader’s commands. He doesn’t plan on obeying unless he’s given a (good) reason. “He is not what you think he is.”

“And how would you know what I think?” Keith shoots back, trying to keep the anger out of his voice. “I’m perfectly capable of forming my own opinions.”

A few chattering guests walk by, forcing them into silence. Keith watches them pass so he won’t have to look at Kolivan, sure that doing so will only increase his agitation.

Kolivan releases a tired sigh, and just like that it all drains away. Even without him saying so, he knows that Kolivan is only acting this way out of concern and Keith has learned to accept that it’s his way of showing that he cares.

Despite the endless frustration it brings…

Keith looks at Kolivan and offers up a small smile to show that all is forgiven on his end. He gets a brief nod in response, and they move on from the topic to touch upon it on a later date (as usual).

“How long would you like me to stay here?” Keith asks Kolivan, keeping his hands behind his back as he stands up straighter.

“Until you find anything that may have given King Zarkon the motive to murder King Alfor. I’d like for you to report back to base once you get it, and then we’ll decide where we go from there.” A touch of concern lightens Kolivan’s eyes, softening his features, but it’s gone before Keith can focus on it. “Will you have sleeping quarters?”

“King Alfor never took away my access to the castle,” Keith informs him. “He said that I’d always have a home there if I ever needed one. My old room will still be there.”

Kolivan reaches out and places a hand on his shoulder, squeezing lightly before pulling back. It’s an acknowledgment of what Keith has lost, a condolence portrayed in one simple gesture. That’s all he’ll get from him.

Feelings are something that the Blades cannot afford to have, lest they cloud their judgment and compromise their missions altogether—a risk that can never be taken since their missions are the only thing that matter, as Kolivan has reminded him countless times.

 _‘Emotions are a luxury we cannot afford,’_ Kolivan will also add, gazing at him with an expression akin to disappointment. He knows why it’s there; Keith is often the one who strays from the original mission to save people, a weakness that most of the Blades attribute to the human blood that flows through his veins.

Keith privately considers it a strength.

“I’ll take my leave now,” Kolivan says. “Try and get through this as quick as possible, I’d rather not think about what King Zarkon may be planning next. Stopping him before he can disrupt the peace even further is a must.”

“Of course.”

He watches Kolivan leave with a large crowd of people, blending in seamlessly until he’s practically unnoticeable to the naked eye. Keith, of course, can see him clearly thanks to years of training. To everyone else, however, Kolivan would be just another visitor leaving after paying his respects.

Keith heads into the castle when the crowd thins out a little, mentally mapping out a path through the place he once called home.

 

**♔♔♔**

 

His quarters are exactly as he remembered.

King Alfor had offered to buy him things that would make the room more to his liking, but Keith had declined and said that he was fine with its simplicity. The only indication that it was truly his own was the small, framed picture he left behind when he went off with the Blades.

The picture itself is a bit ripped at the edges, worn and wrinkly but still intact. Keith picks it up and stares at the smiling faces of his parents, tracing their features like he used to do when he was younger.

Pictures were something his father loved to take, toting around a small camera to make sure he captured everything during their outings—it was the kind that could develop photos almost instantly.

He used to wonder why he would use that when there were already cubes that could take pictures and display them holographically, and even asked his father when they were exploring the ruins of their home planet.

“Sometimes an actual photo feels much more special than one of those fancy holograms.” His father had said, carefully holding one of the pictures while it developed. “It’s a piece of history in our hands, one that allows us to remember the moment.”

“But the cubes do that too…” Keith had replied, confused.

His father chuckled and ruffled his hair. “M’just an old man who likes old Earth things, it helps me miss home a little less.”

Now, Keith is grateful that his father loved to stick to his roots. A cube could have been easily broken and everything would have been lost on it, the only disadvantage of owning one, but this picture has been with him for so many deca-phoebs and has yet to be lost.

It’s the only thing he has of his past, the last tie to his human side.

Keith sets the photo down carefully, leaving it in the exact same spot as before, and climbs into bed. He doesn’t bother changing out of his suit, accustomed to leaving it on in case of emergency, and falls asleep rather quickly.

He dreams of grey eyes and golden lights.

 

** II. THREADS **

 

Keith begins his search when the sun is barely rising, orange bleeding into the indigo sky as light begins to shine.

He heads to the site of King Alfor’s death, one of the few labs in the castle, carefully stepping around the mess—glass strewn across the table and floors from shattered beakers, papers ripped up and made illegible with whatever liquid was in said beakers, and a pool of dried blood.

“Nothing here,” Keith mutters to himself after he’s searched every corner of the room, only slightly disappointed.

 _Never expect it to be easy,_ as Thace (another member of the Blade of Marmora) would usually say before a mission.

After checking over the lab again (one can never be sure if they missed anything the first time around), and then checking it a third time (or the second time), Keith shuts the door and starts making his way towards one of the other labs.

 _There has to be something,_ Keith thinks. _Maybe an experiment that King Zarkon wanted, or a formula that King Alfor was working on._

Keith goes back to making his way through the castle, deftly managing to evade the guards only to come across another problem—or rather, another person.

“Keith!” Allura exclaims in shock, staring at him with wide eyes. A teary smile soon overtakes her face, and then she’s pulling him in for a hug. “How wonderful it is to see you! I have missed you!”

Keith returns her embrace after remaining still for a few ticks, awkwardly patting her back. “I’ve missed you too,” he replies. “I’m sorry I haven’t been around as much.”

“I’m just happy that you’re here now.” She pulls away from him and gazes at him sadly. “I wish it were under better circumstances.”

“How are you holding up?”

Allura releases a weary sigh. “Things could be better,” she answers. “I’m expected to take the throne already.”

Keith is surprised. “So soon?”

“You and I both know how royal politics work,” Allura replies with a small quirk to her lips. “Father made sure we learned it all. I must take the throne so our enemies won’t think our kingdom weak after such a devastating loss.”

“It’s still not fair,” he says with a frown, reaching out to place a hand on her arm. “You should be allowed to grieve.”

“I still am,” Allura says, and lets out a small laugh that has sadness weaved within it. “The weight of my father’s death hangs heavy on my shoulders and tries to pull me down with every step I take.” She takes a deep breath. “But I refuse to let that hold me back from my duty. My people, all of Altea, need me more.”

He stares at her, searching for any sign of doubt. She gazes back at him steadily, and she dips her head when Keith nods in understanding. That’s how she truly feels.

“Do you need anything from me?” he asks.

“Your support.” Allura leans in closer and continues in a whisper, “Your skills.”

Taken aback, all Keith can say is, “What?”

“I wasn’t born in the previous quintant,” Allura says, a huff of laughter leaving her. “I know you didn’t come here just to see me and pay your respects, I know you’re here for the Blades as well.” She straightens and brushes a hand down her dress. “I’ll allow you to access anything in the castle while you’re here. Please let me know if you find anything.”

Keith reaches out and rests a hand on the crook of her elbow, preventing her from leaving right away. “Is there anything that _you_ have found out?” he asks in a low voice. “Anywhere you can tell me to look? It would make it easier if I had a starting point.”

Allura looks thoughtful. “The place my father always retreated to whenever he wanted to do some reading,” she says. “His private study. It’s always locked and secure, I can’t imagine a better place to have the clues you need. I’ll rework the program so you’re able to access it with a scan of your eye.”

He squeezes her arm once before letting go. “Thank you, princess.” Keith says politely, not bothering to hide his self-deprecating smirk when he bows. “What a great honor it is to meet you again.”

“You’re just awful,” she tells him with an eye roll, almost making him laugh.

They both depart with one final goodbye, heading in opposite directions—so similar to when he left to be with the Blade of Marmora permanently.

It takes a few dobashes for Keith to figure out where the private study is, and even then he gets a bit lost when he passes by new rooms and corridors. He ends up having to pull up a layout of the Castle on his small holopad and follows the path to get there.

While walking through the corridor with his eyes glued to his holopad, Keith bumps into another someone—this one unexpected.

“Oh!” Keith rocked back on his heels, staring up into the face of Kuro. “What are you doing here?”

Kuro arches a brow, amusement present in his voice when he asks, “Surprised to see me?”

“... Yes, actually,” Keith answers, cheeks growing warm with embarrassment. “I didn’t know that you knew Allura.”

“My family was once friends with her family,” Kuro says. “I may be the only one left with the name, but it’s still expected of me to watch her crowning ceremony and offer my kingdom’s support… it also helps that she offered sleeping quarters for the guests who traveled from afar.”

Keith tries not to sigh.

While he does understand the kind gesture (which is expected from a future Queen), he worries that she didn’t think about the consequences of having the castle open to the public when her father was just murdered.

 _Then again, I doubt they’d come after her so soon,_ Keith thinks darkly.

History has told him that insurgents are more likely to take out leaders when hope is regained after a previous loss, letting it build up so the people believe that everything will be truly okay again and then tearing it from them in an instant—snuffing out the flame that is hope and letting the kingdom fall into chaos.

Realizing he’s let the silence linger for a little _too_ long, Keith quickly offers up a shaky smile and says, “It’s good to see you again.”

Kuro smiles back at him and Keith tries his best to hold eye contact, resisting the urge to track the movement of Kuro’s lips. “It’s good to see you, too. How long are you staying?”

“I don’t know,” Keith says truthfully. “I could be here for this quintant only, or I could be here for three. It all depends on how much inf—”

He stops with a frown, wondering why he’s giving out so much of his private information to someone he just met. It can’t be blamed on attraction, though it’s definitely there on Keith’s end, and it certainly cannot be trust—he’s always had trouble trusting people, allowing relationships to build until he cautiously lets people in, and even _then_ he’s still wary—so, what?

 _There’s just something about him,_ Keith decides, meeting Kuro’s patient gaze. _I don’t trust him, but I feel like I can._

“Kolivan tasked me with finding out anything that might give us a hint of King Zarkon’s motivation for murdering King Alfor,” he eventually tells him, keeping his voice low. “I’ll be reporting back to him once I do find something and right now I hope that something will be in King Alfor’s private study.”

“Well,” Kuro says. “Maybe I can help?”

He cocks his head to the side. “Why?”

Kuro smiles sheepishly. “I was going to ask if you’d like to spend time with me, but now that I know that you’re busy with something important…” He shrugs. “I can help you as well. Kill two birds with one stone, for short.”

Keith regards him curiously, releasing a thoughtful hum. “Alright,” he says slowly, continuing his path to the library. Kuro catches up to him easily and matches his pace. “I’ll most likely be going through a ton of data, so extra eyes will be helpful.”

“I didn’t know the Blades took interest in the affairs of kingdoms.”

“Normally we don’t, our goal is to keep the peace between them, but things have changed,” Keith says, glancing over at him. “I’m surprised that you know of us.” His lips tick up, words slightly teasing, “And here I thought we were being discreet with our operations.”

“All of you are definitely discreet, you don’t have to worry about that,” Kuro assures in the same tone, eyes full of amusement. A pensive expression soon passes over his face. “I encountered Kolivan many deca-phoebs ago, which is how I found out about your organization. He must have seen something in me, because he hated me upon sight. He still does to this day.”

How… strange.

Keith has known Kolivan for some time now and that does not sound like the leader he knows. Hating someone without reason?

Not knowing what to say to that, since he only has one side to the story and Kolivan didn’t seem very forthcoming on the subject of Kuro last night, Keith nudges him and asks with a faint smirk, “Deca-phoebs, huh?”

“I’m older than I look,” Kuro shoots back, a hint of a smile on his face.

They arrive at the door to King Alfor’s private study, which opens after Keith places his hand on a small pad on the wall to be scanned. It looks much smaller than the one that’s open to the public, shelves full of books and papers lie strewn across the desk.

The room lights up once they step inside, door closing behind them. Keith goes over to the desk where a monitor rests, leaning in when it demands identification. He keeps both eyes open as a blue light shines on both of them for a couple of ticks before disappearing completely.

Blinking away the spots in his vision, Keith stares at the monitor and waits.

A soft chime rings through the air followed by holographic screens popping up all around them, full of unopened files, images, videos, and typed up journal logs.

Kuro whistles. “We’ve got a lot of work to do.”

Keith walks over to the screen with the logs, shrinking it down enough to be able to hold it and read it in his hand. “At least it’ll be easier to get through with the two of us,” he comments lightly, receiving a laugh in return.

Many vargas pass as Keith combs through log after log. It’s strange to read a dead man’s words when Keith can practically hear his voice while he reads them, as if King Alfor himself were standing before him.

This King Alfor is so different from the one who took him in. He was always patient with Keith, even when he was keen on lashing out to avoid more losses, and waited for him to take the first step towards a familial relationship instead of forcing it upon him.

These journal logs lay out the deep thoughts of King Alfor: the experiments he conducted, his fascination with the results he achieved and the rest of the world, his eagerness to overcome failure and revisit the problem to fix, and even things Keith could never hope to understand.

Everything that made up King Alfor is scattered across these logs and is perhaps the only existing thing that showcases his true self.

He sets those aside to give to Allura.

Keith goes back to the monitor and searches for an entry point. Once he finds it, he pulls off the glove on his left hand and then peels away a piece of synthetic skin on his wrist. It reveals a small chip, given to him by another member of the Blades to save whatever information he finds.

The way it’s hidden was developed by the same Blade, making it easier for members like him—ones without fur, that is—to hide data in places their enemies won’t think to look. Claws are the usual hiding place for most of the Galra in the Blades, but since Keith doesn’t have any… this works.

Keith leaves the chip in there and swipes a different hologram towards him, eyebrows arching in surprise when he sees what’s on it.

There’s a whole list of files on the screen, each one having different names and sorted in alphabetical order.

He skims through the list to see what he’s getting himself into, highlighting the ones that jump out to him—ALCHEMY, BLACK, DAIBAZAAL—and stops when he comes across a familiar name in the ‘K’ section.

“There’s a file on you,” Keith says out loud, looking over at Kuro.

The video file that Kuro is watching pauses when his head whips towards Keith.

Keith tilts the screen in his direction when he walks over, pointing to the file marked ‘KURO,’ and watching his face for any changes. When Kuro remains expressionless, Keith selects it and hovers over the option to open it.

A hand rests on his shoulder, a breath ghosting over his ear as Kuro quietly says, “Please don’t.”

Keith barely contains his shiver, but does not attempt to mask his confusion over Kuro’s request. He glances at him and waits for him to continue, which he does without looking at Keith.

“I don’t want you to know who I am through a file that King Alfor put together,” Kuro says, letting go of him. Keith finds that he misses the warmth, no matter how fleeting the touch was. “I want to tell you myself—not now, but sometime in the future.”

The promise in those words is what makes Keith deselect the file, scrolling up to the one titled ALCHEMY and opening that one instead. He meets Kuro’s gaze and inclines his head, turning his attention to the information in the file.

Nothing more needs to be said, but Kuro’s hand does return to his shoulder and this time he squeezes it in silent gratitude.

Kuro moves away from him and heads back to the hologram with the paused video file. His hand hovers over it before it flies over to Keith’s side, Kuro returning with it. They stand together as they pour over everything, close enough for Keith to feel Kuro’s heat, and lose themselves in the data.

Alchemy is a subject that King Alfor was known for, one that Keith could never understand as well as he did. He makes two copies of the file after reading some of it, saving it to the chip and setting the copy aside for Allura—it was something she wanted to learn from her father, he remembers.

The file (and his logs) aren’t the same thing, but he hopes that it’s close enough.

Keith moves on to view other files, a headache threatening to form at the onslaught of new information—so many things he’s never even heard of, so little that he actually recognizes.

At least he won’t have to be the one to read through it all back on base, that’s usually a job for Kolivan.

He stops at the file labeled ‘QUINTESSENCE,’ lips pursed as he squints at it. The word actually sounds familiar, and yet he can’t recall where he last heard it. Did Kolivan mention it? Was it something he overheard on base?

His gaze falls on the hologram with King Alfor’s logs.

 _Or maybe I read it somewhere,_ Keith thinks and pulls it closer. He brings up the search option and carefully types the word in, watching the results pop up a tick later—it’s been mentioned fifty-eight times throughout the logs.

He settles back against the shelf to reread the passages that contain the word.

_Quintessence is an energy source that can be found in all living things, a “life force” if you’d rather call if that. It is what gives us life, our very own essence, and as of right now there are only two types of quintessence: raw and concentrated._

_Concentrated quintessence is what exists in our very beings while raw quintessence is found in planets—plant life contains the most of it. Raw quintessence can provide an endless supply of power to technology; experiments show that it does not need to be replaced and it can possibly last for lifetimes._

_This substance can also heal wounds to the point of leaving no scar, but it is unknown if there are lasting effects when treating oneself with quintessence._

An arrow points to small box of text: _Extension of life, perhaps? Ask Honerva, she has been experimenting with quintessence on her own._

Honerva?

Keith tags that name to look into later, continuing with his reading.

The name is mentioned several more times, along with some of their own notes (he is only guessing that it’s from them based on the personality differences in the writing). They mostly talk about the quintessence experiments they have completed and even discuss possibilities of using quintessence to power things such as ships or weapons if they are able to find a way to convert it.

The idea of quintessence actually being used to power more than communicators and holopads (which is what King Alfor tested it on) seems rather ludicrous… and yet it continues to stick out to him more than the rest of the files, a feeling of unease coiling in his gut.

In the wrong hands… this substance could be a danger to other people.

He reads through the rest of it, noting that some passages are blacked out—as if King Alfor wanted to hide the information he once jotted down. Keith leaves it alone because he’s not as knowledgeable in the art of decrypting as most of the technicians back on base.

Keith’s so caught up in this, he doesn’t even notice when Kuro moves and startles when a hand is placed on his shoulder.

“You seem like you’re invested in what you’re reading,” Kuro says, the inquiry obvious in his words.

Keith shifts the hologram towards him in response. “Maybe you know who that person is,” he says as Kuro reads through the file, pointing at Honerva’s name when he gets to that section. “They come up a few times.”

“Honerva,” Kuro reads, lips turned downward. “Zarkon’s witch?”

“I thought her name was Haggar?” Keith questions, bewildered.

“An alias, I assume.” Kuro leans against the desk and pulls the screen closer to him, not even blinking as he scrolls through it all. “She must have created it so she could experiment with quintessence freely. Don’t take my word on it, though. I’m merely tossing out ideas.”

“It’s not a bad one,” Keith muses. “There’s been whispers of the Druids coming together in Daibaizaal, and our spies claimed to have seen Haggar alongside them. If she’s been experimenting with them and their powers… who knows what she could accomplish.”

He looks over at Kuro when he doesn’t reply, concern flooding through him when he sees how still he is. Keith reaches out slowly and places a hand on his arm, tensing when Kuro flinches beneath his touch.

“You alright?” Keith asks when Kuro looks at him—eyes wild and confused. He rubs a thumb across his bicep, keeping his voice low. “Kuro?”

“Am I…” Kuro begins, trailing off with a shake of his head. His expression clears, shifting into one of embarrassment that Keith only sees for a few ticks before he looks away. “I’m alright. Got lost in thought.”

Keith doesn’t believe him, but he also doesn’t want to pry when Kuro clearly doesn’t want to talk about it.

“Okay,” he says, letting go of his arm after squeezing it once. “If you find anything that you think is important, show it to me so I can decide if it should go into the chip.”

“Yes, sir,” Kuro replies in a playful tone of voice.

It’s enough to make his lips curve upwards, which he hides with a quick duck of his head. He shakes himself out of his amusement and goes back to work.

They actually manage to get through everything, most files only skimmed through since it really had nothing to do with what Keith needed. Keith makes sure to save all the important things onto his chip, placing it in the little pocket of synthetic skin and covering it up once again.

Kuro walks him to the kitchens so they can grab something to eat, Keith heading for one of the secret cupboards to grab a packet of crunchy fruit skins as a side snack.

He takes his time when eating and walks slower than he normally would when they start heading back to where his sleeping quarters are. Although they barely make any conversation, Keith finds that he enjoys the silence between them—not at all uncomfortable.

Tension begins to trickle into their bubble as they stop at Keith’s door, the both of them shuffling in place while Keith tries to find something to say; he has to say goodbye, since he’ll be leaving now that he has everything the Blades need.

“I have to report back to base,” Keith starts off plainly, lifting his head to look at Kuro. “I might leave tonight, depending on how soon Kolivan wants me back.”

“Do you really have to?” Kuro asks, closing the distance between them by taking another step closer. Keith’s eyes flutter shut when Kuro brings a hand up and brushes his fingers over Keith’s cheeks, breath lost for a moment.

“I do,” he murmurs, leaning into the touch.

“Stay for another quintant,” Kuro whispers. “Don’t leave me just yet.”

“You shouldn’t make such demands when you don’t even know me,” Keith replies softly, opening his eyes and clearing his throat to regain control of himself. His cheeks darken as a warmth blossoms within his chest, embarrassment tinged with something unrecognizable.

“It may take some time,” Kuro says. “But I’ll know you, and you’ll know me.”

“Confident…” Keith mutters, almost smiling when Kuro laughs.

He stares down at the floor, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth. Keith _could_ stay here for longer, make up some excuse for the extra time spent at the castle or lie to Kolivan and say that going through the data took up more time than he expected.

Which would be true if he didn’t have Kuro to help.

Keith doesn’t even know _why_ he has the urge to go through with Kuro’s plea, to obey the person who is practically a stranger to him.

 _Maybe I’ll find out if I spend some more time with him after all,_ Keith thinks as he stares out one of the Castle windows. He can’t help but notice how the sun casts a shining light across the floor. It helps make his decision, reassuring him.

“How about I show you one of the places that never failed to bring me peace?” Keith asks, the spark of interest that flares in Kuro’s gaze almost making him smile.

“Lead the way,” Kuro says.

 

**♔♔♔**

 

He takes them to the gardens, leading them past a few hedges until they reach the secret side to it—another garden, this one much smaller than the other.

It used to be Keith’s favorite place of retreat, one he always escaped to when the world around him would become too much for him to handle. He would lie down by the small pond, dipping a hand in the water to relish in the coolness of it or sit beneath the tree and let the quiet surround him until he dozed off comfortably.

Even now he can already feel the tension draining away as he breathes in the fresh air. He glances over at Kuro to catch his reaction, only to find grey eyes staring right at him.

“What?” he asks.

Kuro’s face softens, and then he’s looking all around then with a tranquil expression. “It’s beautiful out here,” he says, voice full of appreciation. “I didn’t expect this.”

Satisfied, Keith walks over to sit beneath the tree. He pats the empty spot beside him and waits for Kuro to plop down before leaning back with a content sigh.

“After all these deca-phoebs… this garden still looks the same,” Keith says quietly. “I feared that someone else may have found this place and ruined it by adding new things but no, nothing has changed.”

“Did anyone else know of this place?”

“Only King Alfor and myself,” he answers, lips twitching when he peeks over at Kuro. “And now you.”

Kuro blinks and ducks his head, but not before Keith saw the slow-growing smile on his face. “I feel honored that you have shared this with me.”

Ignoring the way his face grows warm, Keith slowly exhales and allows himself to relax. It’s been a while since he had the chance to do just that, too focused on the missions that are thrown his way—always tense and ready to fight.

“If you say that it still looks the same,” Kuro suddenly says, bringing him back from the nothingness in his head. “Wouldn’t that mean someone took care of this garden? How could it thrive on its own?”

“King Alfor used to say that there was magic in Altea,” Keith says quietly, dropping a hand to feel the blades of grass beneath his palm. “He would say that every life on this planet had magic. Every person, every animal, and every plant. Maybe it’s magic that keeps this place alive.” He lets out a laugh, looking over at him. “It sounds silly, doesn’t it?”

Kuro meets his gaze with an intensity that steals his breath away. “No,” he says. “It doesn’t.”

It falls silent, the only sound being the rustling leaves as the wind blows through the tree branches. Keith lets his eyes slip shut, though he makes sure to not fall into a doze lest he be caught unaware and attacked like the last time he was in a similar state.

(Regris, one of the other Blades, often brings it up to tease him about it.)

“Do you miss him?”

Keith arches a brow, not opening his eyes when he asks, “Miss who?”

“King Alfor.”

He releases a sigh and peers over at him, bringing his knees up and resting his elbows on them. “Of course I do,” he answers, lips turned downward. “I don’t show my grief as openly as his subjects, but I still feel it—not as intensely, yes, because loss isn’t new to me.”

“Oh?”

Keith opens his mouth to respond and freezes, shutting it with an audible _click_ and shrugging in response. He’s not one to unpack his past so freely and would rather avoid getting a look of pity thrown his way.

“It’s not new to me either,” Kuro continues quietly. “I, uh, lost my father a long time ago.”

“Oh…” Keith can definitely understand that. “I’m sorry.”

“I isolated myself after the death of my father,” Kuro continues, a hint of anger to his words when he says, “He was all I had and they took him away from me.” His eyes turn sad, and Keith doesn’t dare look away. “I was forced to take the throne since no one else could. I had no family, no friends, no support system, and it led to me cutting myself off from the other kingdoms.”

Keith stares at him, sympathy stirring in his chest.

“My mom left when I was young,” he finds himself saying, directing his gaze forward when Kuro’s eyes snap to him. “My father died sometime after that. I was sent to live with various families, though they were all quick to give up on me.” Keith plucks a flower from the grass and brushes a thumb over the soft petals. “King Alfor housed me after I befriended his daughter, but by then my trust issues had built and I had put walls up to protect myself.” A soft, sardonic laugh escapes as he adds, “I guess I have my own version of loneliness.”

“... Yeah,” Kuro says a few ticks later. “Me too, I suppose.”

Maybe it’s the similarities that lie in their pasts—the way they’ve loved and lost the most important people in their lives, leaving them alone in the universe—that causes Keith to speak, an offering for a lost soul just like him.

“You don’t have to be.”

It may have been a trick of the light, the setting sun casting an illusion, but Keith swears that Kuro’s eyes flash a yellow gold when they look at each other. After blinking a few times, they’re back to a warm grey that makes his heart jump in his chest.

 _Definitely a trick of the light,_ Keith tells himself.

All thought on the topic suddenly leaves him when Kuro captures one of his hands in a gentle grip, a smile on his face.

“Neither do you,” he says in a low voice.

Keith can’t help but smile in response.

 

**♔♔♔**

 

“I wish you could stay.”

They’re standing in the hangar of the castle the next quintant, tucked away in a shadowy corner so they can speak before Keith leaves. Kuro’s hand is holding one of his own, thumb brushing across his knuckles— _back and forth, back and forth, back and forth._

It soothes Keith more than it should, but it also makes him even more reluctant to leave.

Keith had spent the morning with Kuro, just the two of them in the secret garden simply enjoying each other’s company.

“I wish I could stay, too.” Keith confesses in a whisper, surprising himself when he realizes that he’s being completely honest. “But I’ve been here for too long. Kolivan is expecting information, and he’ll come here himself if I don’t come back soon.” He sighs. “I can’t even stay for Allura’s crowning ceremony, my mission is more important to them.”

Kuro’s disappointed expression is fleeting, replaced with resignation. “Will I see you again?”

“I don’t know,” Keith answers truthfully.

“Do you want to see me again?”

Heat spreads across his cheeks. He’s suddenly grateful that they’re standing in a spot where his blush won’t be seen.

“I do,” he answers in a soft exhale.

“I do, too. Of course I do,” Kuro replies as he shuffles closer, face soft. “We haven’t known each other for long, but I feel a connection between us.” He touches their foreheads together for one brief moment, and the skin-to-skin contact causes sparks to shoot down Keith’s spine.

They’re so close, Keith could easily tilt his head up and press their lips together if he wanted (and boy does he want to, especially when he feels Kuro’s shaky exhale fanning across his lips).

“Strangely enough, I feel it as well,” Keith replies, one hand sliding up to grip Kuro’s bicep. “I’ve never felt this way about anyone before. It always takes time for me to trust someone, but you? I think…”

_I think I can trust you. I think I want to trust you._

_Maybe I already do._

“Yeah,” Kuro says, hushed. “I think so too.”

They jump apart when a couple of guards pass by, heads bent low as they laugh about something. Keith finds that he misses their closeness and has to fight the urge to reel him back in.

“Here,” Kuro says suddenly, gaining his attention once more, and holds out a circular object that pulsates with a purple glow—much more muted than the one associated with King Zarkon’s kingdom. It resembles a stone one would find on any regular planet but it gives off a strange warmth when he takes it in his hand.

“You’re giving me a rock?” Keith asks as he inspects it curiously.

“No, ah.” Kuro sounds a bit flustered. “A communicator. You’ll be able to contact me with that no matter where you are and no one will be able to trace it or listen in on this specific frequency. I created it myself.”

“Oh?” Keith is sure his bewilderment shows. Not even the Alteans have managed to craft technology like this... incredible…

“Only if you want to,” Kuro says. “If not, then you’ll have a pretty stone to remember me by.”

He curls his fingers around it and holds it close to his chest, smiling up at Kuro. “I do,” he says quietly. “I may not be able to communicate with you as much as we’d like, but I will try my best.”

“Just know that I’ll be on the other end of that communicator if you need me for anything,” Kuro says with serious eyes. “I mean anything, Keith, even if it’s for something like needing extraction from a planet you’re stuck on.”

Keith blinks. “Really?”

“Of course,” Kuro smirks. “I know you can take care of yourself, but I still want to extend the offer of help. I can guess that the missions you go on can probably get a bit… dicey.”

“You’re definitely not wrong,” he replies. “I can usually get out of trouble on my own. I have before… but thank you. I’m sure I’ll take you up on it if things become too much for me.”

“Hopefully not too soon,” Kuro says. “I’d like to see you, of course, but I want you to be safe.”

Keith laughs. “I’ll try my best.”

Kuro insists on walking him to his ship when their time together finally comes to an end, their fingers occasionally brushing. He helps Keith climb into the ship and calls his name before he can close the door behind him.

“Yes?” Keith asks, glancing down at him over his shoulder.

“I’ll miss you,” Kuro says, eyes darting away as pink spreads across his cheeks. If Keith knew him better, he’d think that Kuro looked rather… _shy._ “See you around.”

Although he feels the same way, Keith can’t bring himself to say the words—so he just nods and smiles at him, sliding into the pilot’s seat and starting up the ship.

Once he’s ready to take off, he glances out the window one last time. Kuro is standing right where he left him, staring back at him, and all Keith can manage is a tiny wave before leaving the Castle.

He wonders what would have happened if he had stayed; would they have gotten to know each other better? Would they have accompanied one another to Allura’s crowning ceremony? Would they have danced together later that night and maybe found their way to his old room? Would they have tumbled into bed and—

“Stop it, Keith,” he mutters to himself, cheeks burning hot. “You barely know the guy.”

(But he wants to.)

 

**♔♔♔**

 

“Welcome back,” Kolivan greets the moment he hops out of his fighter ship, already turning and walking towards one of the more private rooms. “Let us look through what you have brought us.”

Keith passes the chip over to one of their technicians, Xialt, who slides it into their monitor and brings up all the files on their hologram display. He points out the separate folder he made for the more important information, ready to discuss his findings.

Kolivan interrupts him, voice commanding as he says, “Thank you, Keith. This will surely help our cause. You are to go to your quarters and prepare for your next mission. Regris will brief you on your task and you will leave in one varga.” He gives Keith one long, assessing look before turning his attention to the holograms. “You are dismissed.”

He looks over at Kolivan incredulously. “Excuse me?”

“You have completed your mission and brought us what we need. You will be going on another mission and you will return with additional information, hopefully,” Kolivan says, barely glancing at him. “Is that understood?”

“Why am I heading back out so soon?” Keith questions, eyes narrowed as he stares at his leader. “Is this because of K—”

“ _Dismissed,_ ” Kolivan stresses, brows knitted together. “You must be ready to head out at any time, any new intel we can obtain is vital to our mission.” His voice is low when he says, “We can’t afford any distractions, Keith.”

And just like that, Keith understands what’s going on—he’s being punished for not obeying Kolivan’s previous order to stay away from Kuro.

Of course Kolivan would find out, he probably had someone watching over him while he’d been on Altea; as if he were still a small child who needed to be taken by the hand.

Gritting his teeth, Keith manages a single glare before turning and storming out of the room. He’s angry, sure, because he knows that Kolivan thinks he’s doing this for Keith’s own good; he makes these decisions for Keith and expects him to follow through.

 _Like a good little soldier,_ a voice that sounds eerily similar to Kuro says in his head.

He peels his suit off the moment he steps into his own room and kicks it to the corner, heading into the washroom to make sure he’s all clean and presentable. Keith pulls on a cleaner suit afterwards, making sure to slide his knife into the sheath that rests at the small of his back, and finally walks to the hangar to meet up with Regris.

“Are you ready?” Regris inquires once he arrives, voice distorted through his own mask. “We are heading to one of the kingdoms that are rumored to be taken over by King Zarkon’s forces. Stealth is not needed since we can take the uniform off of two Galra guards and blend in with the rest.” He pauses. “We might have to get an additional piece to cover your face.”

“Of course we will,” Keith says dryly. “I easily stand out from the rest of the Galra. Even with my face covered, my height is pushing it.”

Regris releases a throaty laugh as he walks up to the ship and climbs inside.

Keith looks over his shoulder and sees Kolivan standing at the observation windows, unable to see where he’s looking from the distance but feeling the weight of his gaze. His irritation nearly makes a return, but he swallows it back down and heads into the ship after Regris starts it up.

“You have everything?” Regris asks once Keith slides into the other pilot’s seat.

As Keith inputs the coordinates that Regris gives him, he slides his free hand into one of his hidden pockets and curls a hand around the communicator that Kuro gave him. It pulses with warmth in his hold, a reminder that Kuro is truly out there.

“Yeah,” he answers with a smile, leaning back in his seat. He’s still annoyed with Kolivan, but at least he knows his connection to Kuro will remain with him. “Let’s go.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! Talk to me about sheith on my [twitter](https://twitter.com/viribirb)! I post fic updates on here too and sometimes sneak peaks <3!


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